Sir Paul Mccartney - Stadium Rocker Paul Mccartney

Sir Paul McCartney is to embark on his first ever solo UK stadium tour.

The Beatles legend has announced details of five shows to take place this summer - around the time of his 68th birthday in June - including headline appearances at the Isle of Wight and Hard Rock Calling festivals.

A source revealed: "It is really amazing really for a man of his age to embark on such a gruelling, massive tour.

"Put simply, these will be his biggest ever shows in Britain. So, really, it just shows what great shape he is in."

The singer hasn't fully toured Britain since 2003, when he performed in a string of arenas. Since then, he has only performed sporadic shows, such as last December's date at London's O2 Arena.

The new dates on his 'Up and Coming' tour see him play in Dublin, Glasgow and Cardiff, while it is also heavily rumoured that he will announce a date at London's Wembley Stadium in the coming weeks.

Paul said: "It's always brilliant to play for the home crowd and these dates are the ones that me and the band are really excited about."

The musician is also thrilled to have been given the final headline slot at the Isle of Wight festival as he has never played the famous event before.

He said: "I always remember hearing such great things about this festival and it has such a sense of history with the likes of Jimi Hendrix playing there the first time round.

"This will be my first show on the Isle of Wight and I'm looking forward to a rollicking night of rock 'n' roll."

Festival promoter John Giddings - who has also booked Jay-Z and The Strokes to headline the event, which was revived in 2002 - is equally delighted to have Paul join the bill.

He said: "Forty years after Jimi Hendrix performed 'Hey Joe' at Seaclose Park we've finally gotten to 'Hey Jude'. I can't wait."

'Up and Coming' tour - UK and Ireland dates:

June 12 - RDS, Dublin

June 13 - Isle of Wight Festival

June 20 - Hampden Park, Glasgow

June 26 - Millennium Stadium, Cardiff

June 27 - Hyde Park Calling, London